


Beyond the Old Wall

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck
Genre: (on Vriskas part), Fluff, Flushed Romance | Matesprits, Multi, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Pale gamquius, Pre-Sgrub, Red Gamquius, because its cute, its explained later, noncon-moirallegiance, pale Kanquius, polyamorus pale quadrants, various fantrolls but it's mostly in the beginning except for one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-04
Updated: 2015-05-28
Packaged: 2018-03-21 04:13:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 13,677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3677016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is not going to be continued</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak, and you are 3 sweeps old.

The last thing you clearly remember is that something was chasing you. A quite large something that most likely had the intent to kill you; obviously you were running. You have that much common sense at least. However, you apparently do not have enough common sense to notice that you were a- running near the edge of a cliff and b- running on unstable ground.

The small cliff-face collapsed under your weight and you were dropped, that much you can assume; but according to the gash in your forehead you fell quite hard so you don’t actually remember that part.

You also don’t remember falling into the ocean. Or being picked up by someone’s aquatic lusus while you were drowning. Or being pulled out of the ocean by the someone the lusus watches over.

Their name is apparently Gamzee.

You can’t really follow what he’s saying because everything you hear is either really muffled or way too loud, so you just sort of lay in the sand and cough. Gamzee says something that you think had the words bandages in it somewhere, and rushes off to his hive. Gamzees Lusus shuffles halfway out of the water towards you and lowers one of its horns in your direction. Your bag plops to the sand next to your face, suspiciously dry. You stare at it contemplating how this could be until you hear the shifting sand indicating that Gamzee has come back. You turn your head to him and he puts something on your face. He dabs a bit to close to your injury and you wince, he takes his hand away, startled.

“You okay?”

You shrug, closing your eyes so he can continue. It’ll have to be cleaned somehow, and you don’t think you in any state to do it yourself. Eventually he understands your sign and continues, though he does so much more carefully. He tapes a gauze pad over the cut and figures the job done. He tries to help you get up, but you become dizzy and nearly fall over. Without any noticed previous warning on your part, he picks you up. You are quite startled, but you do not say anything. You have said very little throughout this encounter in fact. Talking to people you don't know makes you anxious, so normally you stay silent and watch until you have an idea of them. 

You look at him, and you swear he looks familiar for some reason, but you cannot put a figurative finger on why. While you are puzzling he brings you into his hive.  You are so busy puzzling that you don’t realize that he’s going to put you into his recoupricoon until your right next to it. 

“No. Wait. No,” you say twisting away from it.

He looks down at you, confused. 

“Why not? Won’t it help you get your snooze on?”

“It doesn’t work for me….”

“Oh.” He paused. “Well what do you up and sleep on then?”

“I have a pile of soft things.”

Gamzee frowns, like he’s thinking. He makes another ‘hm’ing noise and turns around. He walks into another block and stops in front of a cushion rectangle.

“You think this would up ‘n do for you?”

“Yeah,” you mumble.

He sets you down gently and you turn onto your side, facing the back of the cushion.  

Maybe if you can’t see the rest of the room you can imagine you’re safe in your hive.


	2. ==> Remember how you met your friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gamzee's POV continuing the events of the last chapter.

Your name is Gamzee Makara and you are absolutely ecstatic. It isn't often that goatdad comes hive, and he's never brought anyone with him before either. You feel bad for the blue-blood though, they seemed really hurt.

You go back outside onto the beach to spend time with your lusus when you see a little cloth bag on the sand next to where the troll had been laying before. You don't remember noticing it, but you have a tendency to not always notice things all that well, so you dismiss it.

Assuming that this belonged to the troll that washed up along side your lusus, you pick it up to put it next to them in your hive. You pick it up upside down by accident though, and the small latch comes undone, causing a couple of items to fall out before you can put it right side up again.

The first thing that fell out looks like some sort of small, homemade husktop like thing. It has a little keypad and a small screen and buttons and everything. You blow the sand off of it and put it into the bag.

The second item looks like a really old book. It has the sign of the Rat on the cover in an indigo blue. It must be the trolls ancestor's book.

The third item confuses you, because it looks like the one you picked up before, except it has the Sagittarius sign on it in a bright blue that matches the blood of the troll your lusus found way better than the other journal did.

Why does this troll have so many journals?

The third book you pick up looks far newer than the last two, and oddly enough has both symbols. The Rats V with inverted curves at the top ends with the sign of Sagittarius smaller in the middle.

A troll with two ancestors was nearly unheard of! And a blue-blood too, a mutant, of all things! How had this troll escaped culling? Some sort of miracles must be at work for this to have happened.

You put the last item back in the small bag.  

When you are about to enter your entertainment block where the troll is, something in the bag begins to make loud beeping noises. You rush back out of your hive so it doesn't wake them up. You don't want to go through their things because that's rude, but you have to stop that awful noise. Its upsetting. After digging past the books. Another bag, some sort of glass container, and the books, you find the electronic object from earlier. The screen is lit up now, and the words on it say "Vriska Serket". You don't know what it means. You press the button that looks like the off/on button on your husktop and a chat log pops up. The line from this "Vriska Serket" trollson says: "Equius you should come back if you want to be hive before the moons go down. Remember last time Aurthour got mad at you for getting back l8t? "

A few seconds later

"I'm not going out there to l8k for you again either. ::::[ "

So the troll your lusus found's name is Equius. Okay.

This Vriska must be a friend of theirs then. You should tell them that they'll be staying over with you, since they got hurt.

"HeY, uH, YoUR FrIeNd up AnD GoT HuRt kInDa bAd aCtUaLlY. mY LuSuS FoUnD ThEm. I ThInK I PaTcHeD ThEm Up pReTtY OkAy tHoUgH. tHeY SlEePiNg it OfF NoW. :o)"

"Wh8t. 8888 0"

"Well what did he do?! >::::0"

" I DoN'T Up aNd gOt tHe kNoWlEdGe tO Be sPiLlEn tHaT RiGhT NoW. hE DiDn't uP AnD TeLl mE."

"Well m8ke him message me back tomorrow! What's your name anyway?"

"GaMzEe mAkArA. :o)"

"Well if my moirial doesn't message me back my the time I wake up tomorrow I'm blaming you Makara! >::::["


	3. Chapter 3

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and not only does your think-pan feel like its going to explode, but the rest of your body feels like you've been sitting in ice. You are in an unfamiliar hive, cold, in pain, and generally uncomfortable. You take a look through your sylladex and choose the blanket you made last week when you and Kanaya started learning how to sew.

That's much better.

Eventually you become warm enough to fall back asleep.

You are awoken again by a horrendous beeping noise. Eventually you recognize it as your messenger. You are then roused further by a loud crash and the squeaky honks of several something's as the troll from before rushes from a block over. You have already begun to fish it out of your bag to turn it off when they get to you.

Its Vriska.

Of course its Vriska.

"Heeeeeeeey sleepy injured face time to confirm that your not deeeeeeeaaaaaaad. ::::P"

"==> Of all the times you interrupt me you do so when I am actually sleeping for once."

"==> Kanaya will be incredibly annoyed with you."

"Annoyed with me for what? Making sure my moiraaaaiiiil is alive? >::::["

"==>We are not moirails Serket."

"Ooooooooh pleeeeaaaase we totally are."

"==>No, we are not. Just because I console you when you are upset after having to hunt trolls our age for your lusus doesn't make us moirails."

"::::'( "

"==> It doesn't."

"Why not? ::::" (((((((("

"==> Because I am too young to be filling quadrants! We are too young to be filling quadrants!"

"If we weren't too young to be filling quadrants would you be paaaaaaaale with me????????"

"==>No."

"::::::::"""" 0"

"Why not!?!?!?!?"

"==> I don't need that quadrant. I am perfectly fine without it. I would only need it if I was like Losaea and had violent tendencies. But I don't."

">:("

"==> I'm a mutant Serket, what did you expect? I am capable of controlling my temper and putting that energy into other activities! I don't need help with that kind of thing!"

":'("

"==> I am going back to sleep. Now leave me alone."

"W8t!"

"You never told me what happened!"

You shut off the sound on the messenger and put it back into your bag so she can't bother you anymore.

Gamzee is still standing behind you.

"You two up and have a fight or something?"

"Kind of, I guess."

He pauses for a while. Like he’s not sure which way to bring the conversation.

"You should probably try to get your rest on again," he says finally.

You nod, and curl back up with your blanket.

He walks away quietly, and you eventually fall back to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and you are currently a few miles down the mountain range away from your hive. You are with your friend. Her name is Losaea Leucop. You both share an ancestor, because you have two. That’s why your last name is hyphenated. You like Losaea. She’s a couple of sweeps older than you. You are almost 4 sweeps old. She and her moirail Morgan are already 6. Losaea is the Rat, an indigo-blue blood; which is a subset of normal indigo like Gamzee is. Her blood is like a dark blue, like a lapis stone. Her moirail is the Horse, a pastel yellow blood; a mutant like you, but a different kind of mutation. Her mutation merely makes her blood and her psionics a light color.

Morgan doesn’t have horns anymore. She’s missing an arm and some fingers on the other hand as well. And an eye. And also a foot. Some of the trolls that lived in Morgans hivestem found out about her mutation. Those trolls aren’t alive anymore. Losaea made sure of that.

But that’s all okay because Losaea knows robotic biology! It’s really cool! Losaea lets you watch her put the parts together and make the blueprints. She even showed you how to join the prosthetic to the surviving body so that it  works the same as the old limb. Losaea is really cool. She lives in a series of tunnels in one of the mountains with Morgan (there was no way she’d let her moirail go back to where she was living before) that she converted into her hive. It has windows and everything. Theres tons of animal skins everywhere, and its really gross because you don’t kill things (Aurthour is a herbivorous lusus, so you are herbivorous too) and you don’t like seeing things that are dead. Which is rather unfortunate because you live next to a corpse pit. It smells terrible. That’s why you’re always either here or at Gamzee’s hive.

“Yo,” Losaea said coming into the block you were in, “Whatcha’ workin’ on kiddo?”

“I’m drawing the couch.”

“Coolio.”

“Realistic stuff is hard,” you say with a frown. “I don’t know if I should try the line shading or the smooth shading….”

“Hmmmm… Well smooth shading is kind of more realistic, so you should probably try doing that one. You could draw it twice and do smooth shading on the first one and line shading on the second.”

“But thats a lot…”

“You could do all of that one today and all of the other one next time you hang out here,” she suggested.

“True.”

"What's up with you two bluebells?" Morgan asked, walking in on the conversation.

"Couches." You reply.

"Just couches?"

"Eq's trying to figure out if they want to use line shading or soft shading on the drawing of the couch that they are working on." Losaea explained.

"Ah, okay. That makes sense. Anyway I'm thinking of carving a little book end for the shelf we have in our block Losii. I was thinking a cut out of a diamond I with our signs intertwined would be kinda cute."

Losaea flushed a deep indigo blue.

"That'd be absolutely adorable."

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and you are almost four solar sweeps old. You are currently at your favorite persons hive. His name is Gamzee. He found you once and you two became best friends very quickly. You two go to each others hives so often actually that you set up transportalizers between them so you don't have to risk walking. You mostly go to his hive though. It always smells like dead bodies down by your hive.... Its really gross. You like the way his hive smells though. It smells like the ocean and rain and him, and you like all three of those things.

You especially like Gamzee, and that's a good thing because he likes you back! You're gonna be In a quadrant together when you're both older like Morgan and Losaea. You guys don't really know what quadrant you want to be in though, because in the journal of the past you two generations ago says that he and the him from then were matesprits, but from what you can tell about the quadrants your both kind of like pale and red with one another. You don't want to have to choose....

You don't usually like it when you have to choose either because what if you end up missing out on something? You don't want to do that!

But you and Gamzee have already talked about this before. You two were just talking about it again just now even. He thinks it should be okay to be both. You've never heard of two trolls being in more than one quadrant with one another before, but if its okay with him to be different like that then it will be okay with you too.

But now you two are done talking about that. Now you're both in the pile of blankets and pillows and books and honk devices that you have in one of his blocks. You have your head resting on his stomach and he's reading aloud one of the stories from his religion's holy book. You don't believe in that stuff, but you like learning about it because then when Gamzee talks about it you have a point of reference to understand it. And then in return Gamzee will listen to your science things and chemistry and why some things work this way or that way, and he'll ask why these atoms mix to make that element,and what makes them do that thing specifically, and when he asks you that you'll say that its probably because that's the way his gods made the miracles to work out, so that your science can happen, and then you cuddle up and sleep.

You like talking to Gamzee.

You just communicate so well. The only other two trolls you can really talk to normally without being anxious to mess up are Kanaya and Nepeta. You talk to them both all of the time too. Before you met Gamzee you had a hard time keeping a schedule and remembering things because you'd always get distracted. Things that are important like eating and and cleaning and sleeping and stuff. Kanaya would normally help remind you to do those things and keep you on task. But now she doesn't have to do that as much because you and Gamzee work around one another and when he eats you eat and when he gets tired or notices that you've been working on things too long he makes sure you sleep.

Now you and Kanaya mostly just trade books and craft together through mail. Its fun. Sewing is really hard though... But you like drawing design for things!

Drawing is mostly a thing you talk about with Nepeta though because she paints. You like painting too but its hard to get paints that don't have blood-based pigments. Mostly you just put plant dye from your garden in water and paint with the water. It's soft but sometimes things come out really pretty! You like painting flowers the most. Flowering plants are your favorites. That's why Gamzee calls you flower sometimes.

Gamzee is your favorite troll.

 

 


	6. Chapter 6

“Hey Equius?” your friend asks. You’re braiding his hair while the two of you sit on a large flat rock overlooking the ocean next to his hive.

“Yeah?”

“Do you like your ancestors?”

“Anyone in particular or....?”

“No.”

“Well, I like the Midnight Rogue. She wrote a lot of interesting things about her adventures and her friends. She had better morals too.”

“What about Darkleer?”

“I’m not sure about him. He never left anything behind so all I know about him are what The Rogue wrote and what was written about the reason he was exiled.”

“Didn’t he help her sometimes though?”

“Sometimes…. The only historically significant ones were when he helped her break into the Grand Highbloods hive to rescue her moirail, and when he stalled shooting the Disciple so that Rogue could pay her end of her promise to the Signless.”

“Promise? You’ve never up and mentioned anything about there being a promise bro.”

“Oh, well, She was flushed for the Signless when they were younger or something but then the Disciple happened and instead of being angry she vowed to protect them if anything were to go awry. Fast forward to things going awry and she was only able to get the Disciple out. None of what actually happened was actually documented though because The Condescension ordered her to be erased from history.”

Gamzee was silent for a while.

“Why are we supposed be like our ancestors?”

Your purse your lips.

“Well I’m not sure that we have to follow their path, it’s just that some do.”

“Do you want to be like Darkleer?”

“Gam I don’t even kill things to eat do you honestly think I’m going to be an executioner?”

Gamzee grinned.

“Nah. That stuff don’t suit you brother.”

“I don’t think it suits either of us.”

 

 


	7. Chapter 7

_~~Why doesn't she understand that you DON’T WANT TO TALK TO HER. Whydoesshekeepdoingittoyouwhywon’tsheSTOP~~ _


	8. Chapter 8

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and you are five and a half sweeps old.

Today you have a bad feeling.

Losaea and Morgan haven’t been messaging you back. You always message them before you leave your hive on days that you visit. They always message you back when they get your message so you know they are aware that you are coming soon. But today they aren’t replying. Why Are They Not Replying.

Today you have a bad feeling.

Vriska left her hive earlier for something, so you leave a stick-pad on her door so she knows where you went.

When you get through the denser part of the trees you look at the sky in the way of Losaea’s hive. Thin wisps of smoke are curling in the air from their direction. The smoke is blue, like the kind Losaea’s fire gives off when she uses her caste power.

Something bad happened. Something absolutely terrible happened.

Losaea never uses her fire. Not even in fights. She only ever uses her strength.

You’re running.

The front of her hive is caved in. Broken glass, twisted pieces of metal and rocks of various sizes litter the floor.

The air smells like stale blood.

“LOSAEA! MORGAN!” you scream, hoping that they‘re around here somewhere, alive and able to respond.

You hear nothing.

You walk around the more precarious rubble to the other side; where burn and psionics marks mar the area. You step on something rounder than everything else, and it makes a crunching noise. You look down.

It’s one of Vriska’s Eight Balls.

You don’t stop running.

You don’t stop running when you get to your hive. You don’t stop running when you’ve jumped over the divide. You don’t stop running until she is face to face with you.

You don’t even have words.

SHE KNEW THEY WERE YOUR FRIENDS. _**SHE. FUCKING. KNEW.**_

Morgan and Losaea would never have picked on a troll that was younger than them. They’ve told you that before.

“ _ **What. Did. You. Do.**_ ” you hiss, lifting her up to your face by her shirt.

“Dude calm down I haven’t done shit,” she says with a shaky voice, “What are you even talking about?”

You drag her outside and drop her to the ground at the end of the cliff, where you can clearly see the mangled corpses of your friends in her Lususes web below you.

“ _ **What. Did. You. Do.**_ ”

“I defended myself, they attacked me first. It’s not my fault they died.”

“Morgan Caball is the most peaceful troll I have ever met. Losaea Leucop would never bother fighting someone our age. You killed them for sport. Like everyone else.” Your shaking.

“Weeeeeeeel Obviously you didn’t know them very well.”

“Fine then. Say they were the ones who attacked you first. What were you even doing there in the first place?”

“Liiiiiiiike I’m gonna tell you~ You never tell meeeeeeee anything.”

She dodges your punch and swipes her feet under yours, causing you to fall forwards. You don’t see her but she grabs one of your horns. A sharp pain overwhelms you, accompanied by a loud crack, and everything goes dark.  



	9. Chapter 9

Your name is Equius Zahhak, and something is terribly, terribly wrong.


	10. Equius Leucop-Zahhak==> Confront Your Abuser

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vriska dun fucked

You have Vriska pinned against the wall you created. The blades of the battle ax are embedded into the rock. The spike is pointed straight at her throat. All you would have to do is push the handle one more time and she would be dead. It isn't as if she doesn't deserve it, after everything she did to you.

But that wouldn't be any fun.

It would be too easy to make her just not exist.

To just wipe her code from the game completely wouldn't be any fun.

That's something she would do.

You're better than that.

You don't kill people.

She hid your memories of the things she had done to you so she wouldn't have to deal with the guilt. She changed you so she wouldn't have to deal with the repercussions of what she had done.

But now you're back.

Her abuse is in plain sight for everyone, for her, to see.

And that is the worst punishment of all.

"I Suggest That You Leave," you growl, dislodging your weapon and dropping it to the ground with a clang.

She looks shocked. You stare at her with malice until the shadows of the meteor take her from your natural vision. As she leaves you get rid of Gamzees bindings, and send the puppet into it’s next destination. Calborn will have no influence on him from now on. That you will make sure of. They’ll have to use a doomed version of the two of you.

This is why you sent godtier after all, isn't it? To save your friends.

 

It isn't until she is gone that you realize that you are shaking.

A tentative hand is placed on your shoulder from behind and you jump away, startled and immediately apprehensive.

Its Kanaya.

Oh. Kanaya.

You like Kanaya.

She would remind you to do things like eat and drink water and clean your block and sleep when you would get distracted by things you'd rather be doing. She'd trade her adventure novels with you for your ancestors journals sometimes. You learned how to sew with her at one point too. She caught on a lot faster than you did.

She also would explain things to you when you didn't understand them, and she'd help you reach conclusions about life things. She'd never get annoyed with it either. You always liked that about her.

She pulls her hand away quickly. Her eyes hold a look of concern. A, a look of hope, as well.

"You Remember Now, Don't You?"

Yes. You do remember.

You then notice Gamzee standing behind her, looking at you in awe.

Gamzee.

Your Gamzee.

His little flower.

 

You are hugging him. Your face is buried in his chest and you are hugging him for the first time in sweeps.

He smells like the ocean and soper and old rubber from being in his horn pile.

You missed him.

He's hugging you back.

You can feel he's crying.

 

You hear someone swear briefly, and a hand is trying to pull the two of you apart. Trying to take him from you. After all this fucking time someone is trying to separate the two of you again.

No.

You let out a vicious, almost territorial hiss and Karkat almost trips over himself as he backs the fuck up.

That's what you thought.

 

You and Gamzee stumble around clinging to one another until his back hits a wall and he slides down it. You kiss the scratches on his face, noting that a-this means Nepeta is dead, and b- you will be able to repay her for dealing with you so long by making FefetaSprite. As you do this you make the space in Gamzees skin causing the gashes not exist, essentially healing them. You also make sure all molecules of things other than skin are gone, so he doesn't get an infection.

Doing such fine-tuned work with your new void powers has practically exhausted you, and you just cling to him.

He holds you.

You are the calmest you have been in sweeps.

 

 


	11. Chapter 11

Your name is Vriska Serket and what you did a sweep and a half ago has come back to bite you in the ass.

"I Suggest That You Leave,"

You run away from him.

Why didn't he just kill you? You could tell that he wanted you dead. You could see it in his eyes. What the fuck was even wrong with his eyes anyway?! They looked looked they had cracks in them! It was scary but you still can't help but wonder. It literally disturbed you that Equius didn't try to kill you for what you did.

But then you get an idea.

Maybe, just maybe, if you talk to him alone....

 

It's the second week. Equius is finally alone and far away enough from the others for you to confront him. You roll your dice and get your ancestor mindfang. Fitting since she's the one who beheaded that awful Rogue.

"Ooooooooh Eeeequuuuiiiiuuuus," you call. Your voice echoes down the stone room. You notice how his shoulders stiffen and you grin. Oh, he's just like Tavros. "Whatcha doin'?" Playful. As if you're both wrigglers again.

Its so annoying that he put up some sort of barriers on everyones minds stopping your powers from working. You hate it when you have to read his expressions from his blank face instead of just plucking them out of his head.

It was just so much easier that way.

"I asked what you were doing Equius. Isn't it ruuuuuuuude to not answer peoples questions?"

"I would like it if you would leave me alone Serket." It's all he replies with.

"Yeah but I'm boooooooored."

Silence.

You put an arm around the back of his chair. He tenses again. You smirk.

"Hey Equius?"

More silence.

"Why didn't you just kill me?"

He side eyes your combat attire and looks back down on whatever it is he's working on. Some sort of wood. Boring.

"I can tell you wanted toooooooo."

He pushes his chair away from the table and stands up. You almost get excited, but then he begins to walk away from you. His hands are shaking. Its slight, but they are.

"Don't act like you don't h8t me for what I did," you're following him now, "I defended myself against your two best friends, I got you to talk to me about your feelings because we were moirails and that was my job, I got you to get past the deaths of two trolls you knew, I got you to realize how big of a mistake it would be to date Gamzee in the quadrant you were going for-"

By now you've gotten him to stopped walking. He's standing there with his fists clenched. Your smirk becomes more prominent.

It was about time.

"I just did what any person would've done to help you," you say innocently, "its not like its my fault you reacted so poorly."

Wow. Fists clenched AND visibly shaking. Your doing well.

"Of course any normal troll would have obviously hated it; noooooooo one would eeeeeeeever try to get help from their moirial; of course you would h8t me for simply trying to Be There for you," you continue sarcastically.

To your utter dismay he doesn't move. You honestly thought he would have tried to put you through at least one wall by now. Guess you miscalculated.

"I would like it if you would leave me alone please Serket."

"Make me."

He turned to face you. His expression was stone and his eyes were as blue as the blood that poured from his horn when you tore it off his skull.

Now you're getting somewhere.

You run at him with your sword drawn and he rolls out of the way; he's quicker on his feet than he was last time you did this. You slash one way he dodges. You slash another way and he's suddenly behind you. You're not sure how long this goes on for.

Behind you you hear running footsteps. You make a swift slashing movement as you turn to see who it is. Your sword connects with something and you hear Equius fall to the ground behind you.

Its Gamzee and Kanaya. You see Karkat Terezi Dave and Rose behind them. Damn. The entire crew decides to show up.

You don't hear Equius get up but you see Gamzee eyes widen when he looks behind you and you see as Kanaya covers her mouth in shock when she sees the same.

The fuck did you do?

You look behind you at the ground and Holy Shit HOLY SHIT you cut off his head.

Its. Its layling like a foot away.

You thought he would dodge it like he had everything else But He Didn't and you ended up cutting his Head Clear The fuck OFF!

You are fucking screwed. There is no flying out of this one.

As Kanaya and Gamzee fetch their strife weapons to begin your now impending doom Equius’ body seems to dissolve into little black particles and proceeds to disappear.

"WHAT THE EVERLOVING FUCK IS GOING ON IN HERE?"

But then theres a crackle of electric green in the air in front of you and the shadows in the room stretch across the floor underneath the spot.

With a spark a large circle containing the sign of the Rat and the arrow of Sagittarius intertwined to create something different alights in blue flames. The same type of blue flames the Rogue possessed as her blood classes power through a similar circle on the backs of her hands, and the same sigil that Equius had on the backs of his.

The shadows rose to form a winged figure in the likeness of a troll, but there were strange cracks going around it. One hole mark in the left side of the chest area leading to many along the spine, leading finally up to the neck, where they were the most concentrated. The shadows dripped off of the figure like water to reveal the troll you had just killed. His eyes were white like porcelain, with large cracks that seemed to shine with hidden galaxies.

The shadows stuck like oil to the wings however. And what strange wings they were as well! Like some sort of cross between a dragons and a birds. Nothing Like the the insect wings the others who have gone godteir received.

It was truly a terrifying site.

He looked down on you, and you braced yourself for what was to come. You did want a fight with him after all, didn't you.

"I suggest that you do not do that again."

Then he walked away. He walked past everyone without a second glance.

Silence.

Then everyone turned and followed him. Leaving you alone in an empty block.

 

 


	12. Chapter 12

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and you are not okay.

You are not okay at all.

 

You had a nightmare about everything. About Vriska and the things she did to you (makeherstopitfeelslikeshe'spokingthroughyourheadagainyoudidn'twanttotalkyouneverwantedtotalkbutshedidn'tcareSheDidn'tCareSHEJUSTMADEYOUTALKWITHOUTANYREGARDTOYOURFUCKINGPRIVACY) about Gamzee and what was done to him (howdaretheyhowdaretheydothattohimheisyourstheycan'thurthimHowFuckingDARETHEYmakehimdoTHOSETHINGS) about what will happen if you don't stop it (TheyDidn'tDeserveThatnoonedeservesthatNooneDeservesthatstopitstopitstopit)

Your head feels like its going to explode and the lump in your throat is making it hard to breathe and swallow and you can't breathe and you're going to throw up and oh god someone's hugging you SomeonesHuggingYou

 

Its Gamzee

And that should make everything okay but it doesn't it doesn't make anything okay at all you feel like you're going to throw up and you're shaking and

"Shoosh motherfucker. You're going to be just fucking fine. Just try and up and breathe for me."

But you aren't in your block in the meteor anymore you're in Vriska's hive and you're four sweeps old again and she's holding you and grabbing the base of your horn

(justlikeshwdidwhwnshetoreitoffjustlikeshedidwhenshetoreitoffsweepslater)

And she's triggering your submission reflex and you can't move and you're crying because you Didn't Want To Talk BUT SHE DIDN'T CARE and she's shooshing you "it's all going to be fine" she says but she says that only because you won't remember because she'll hide it away and you Can't Fucking Breathe

"Flower what's wrong, what got you up and upset like this?" He asks and you shake him off of you

("Just tell me what's wrong Equius Why are You Avoiding Me Equius Aren'tWeMoirailsEquiusJustTellMeWhat'sWrong")

Your head is between your knees and through a film of blue you can see void-green cracks starting to form in the floor around you again and shitShitSHIT justlikelasttimejustlikelasttime

Why can't you just get a fucking grip

Whycan'tyoujustfuckingcontrolthesethings

You can hear Gamzee shuffling around your block through your sorry attempts at breathing and when he comes over to you you flinch away and make yourself smaller even though through the fog of panic you know only wants to help you he's only ever tried to help you no matter what you said to him after what Vriska did to you heonlyevertriedtohelpyourememberwhatyouhadbeforewhatshedidtoyou

 

You don't know how long its been.

 

He's stopped making noise but another noise is coming from somewhere else and out of pure curiosity you look up slightly.

Your husktop is in front of you.

A picture of the ocean is on it. The human ocean, anyway.

The picture's moving.

Why the fuck is the picture moving?

Oh its not a picture its a video. Silly you. You chuckle at yourself quietly. The sound is the human ocean. Its like the one you and Gamzee would fall asleep too when you were at his hive when you were wigglers.

Next to the husktop on either side are your stuffed animals. You made them with Kanaya when you two were learning how to sew.

You have a horse and a meowbe- and a cat. You have a horse, and a cat, and one that looks like Gamzee's lusus, and a manatee, and a turtle, and a sea turtle, and a snake, and a rat, (you switch the positions so the rat and the horse are next to one another. You miss them.)

Your breathing is starting to even out slightly.

Gamzee moves a little bit closer to you.

A little half moon wall of blankets was assembled behind and around you. All purple and olive and jade and patchwork. Two pillows are making a little corner in the small nest.

You like corners. They're nice.

 

Kanaya enters your respite block and makes a quiet chirring noise of concern a couple of feet away from you. Gamzee must have messaged her for backup. She walks slowly, but in your line of sight so you know just where she is as she approaches you. She sits on your other side, across from Gamzee.

You try to make yourself less tense and you feel stinging pains in your arms. When you look you realize you're bleeding. You must have been digging your nails into your skin without realizing it.

Kanaya makes another small noise and you see Gamzees jaw clench out of your peripheral vision.

Your breathing has become rather even, and swallowing has become easier.

"Equius," Kanaya says softly enough for it to not startle you, "do you want to go to the ablutions block with us to clean up?"

You nod, holding tight onto your arms so they'll stop bleeding.

They both stand, and then you stand. You walk to the ablutions block between the two of them, and the carefully put bandages over the claw marks in your skin.

You wash the tearstains off of your face yourself for right now.

When the three of you go back to the main part of your block Gamzee just stands in the middle of the pile Kanaya is setting up and holds you. You lean against him and let your forehead press into his shoulder. You do not jump when he runs his fingers through your hair. You do not jump when they brush close to your hornbeds.

 

Your name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and you are curled up between your two favorite people; half asleep, and perfectly calm, perfectly content.

 

 


	13. Chapter 13

Your name is Gamzee Makara and your little flower is up and seeming more motherfucking stressed than usual.

He's always working deep down in that block of theirs. Writing weird shit on the walls and making some sort of robot thing "for an old friend"-you don't know what any of it means. They don't seem that keen on telling anyone what it up and means either. Not even you. Not even fucking Kanaya for messiahs sake. You know your little blue blooded miracle has their secrets but you do wish that he'd take some time off more often than once every few weeks.

You figure it's time for you to initiate some sweet motherfuckin' pilings.

You build a pile out of a corner from a fuckton of blankets and pillows and some of your flowers old books that were laying around from the last time they you and Kanaya had to jam. Its in the room that people have a tendency to be in, just so Kanaya can keep an ear on things, but you taped up a pretty rad ass blanket roof that hangs around the pile like a tent so no one can see what's going on. Two books pillars hold it up to make a bitchtits lookin entrance. Eq's gonna be SO motherfuckin impressed with you!

You get to your flowers respite block and see that they're up and working on the metal human again.

Seeing them hunched over that table for messiahs know how long make your blood-pusher hurt. They've probably got all kinda knots in their back and aches and shit. He probably won't even notice until you're both down to jam either.

Equius picks up their head and turns to look at you once they've sensed your presence. Then their eyes get all motherfucking squinty like, until they notice they don't got their glasses back on their nose yet. Once they got em on though they grin.

"Well what are you doing all the way down here," they ask, putting some sort of metal piece down.

"I just got thinking all up in my pan that you probably gotta take a motherfuckin break rightta 'bout now."

Equius sighs.

"But I have things to work on-"

"You gotta take care of your motherfuckin self too though bro, and if your not gonna do it yourself I'll just have to drag you along with me," you say, wrapping your arms around their chest from behind and putting your chin on top of their head, " and if I don't get you to come back up with me, Kanaya will," you continue, your tone playful but still serious.

"But-"

"No buts motherfucker, we're jamming and you're gonna relax and get all calm and shit and then you can come back down here and continue whatever the fuck it is your up and doing."

They sigh again.

"Fine."

Just the motherfucking allowance you up and needed. You pick your little flower up humans bridal style and carry them all the way up to the pile.

When you both get curled up inside you just lay there for a while until you snuggle them into your shoulder and get your hands around to his back. Then you get your fingers into making little circles up and down their spine.

They just about melt.

After a long while of the two of you just huddled against one another while you do this, you think he's calm enough for you to go a little further without panicking him.

You move your hand up to their head and just run your fingers through his hair. No major reaction, so you move towards their horns; rubbing lightly along their hornbeds.

You feel your dear flower tense, and their eyelashes flutter against your skin when they quickly open. You draw away immediately.

Shit.

Doing pale things when pale things can trigger them fucking sucks. Fucking Vriska. Ruining everything.

Equius's breathing is still steady though, and they haven't drawn away from you completely.

Maybe if you just don't fucking move-

They take a deep breath

And lean back into you.

"You wanna do this?" You ask quietly.

They nod.

"If you ever want me to stop you can just-"

"No, it's. It's fine. I, I trust you."

Messiah fucking damn you pity this troll so fucking hard in so many different ways its almost unbearable sometimes.

This time when you rub along their hornbeds they don't draw away.

You make sure to go softly until Equius leans into you more. Only then do you move on to their actual horns.

The reaction you get surprises you. Sure its not like Karkat hasn't told you what happens when you trigger a trolls submission reflex but dear messiahs the look on their face is so cute and peaceful; and the little squeaks and chirps and clicks they're making are so motherfucking Precious. You don't even care about the awkward as shit angle your arms are at because he trusts you so fucking much you could just cry.

Your so happy.

They're purring and holy shit they are actually purring you haven't heard them purr in sweeps.

This is the best miracle you've witnessed since they remembered.

Nothing could make you happier.

 

 


	14. Chapter 14

My name is Loseae Leucop. I am the last of my session. A couple trillion years ago I entered my universes version of the game alongside around 70 or more other trolls. Originally my godtier was Heir of Void, like my descendent. However when one of us comes along, it is because the game needs us to truly inherit void, and become an Omnipresent; more than an all encompassing class like Muse or Lord. Players like us need to become an all encompassing classpect, as you people have begun to call it. There are three “classes” in the Omnipresence, merely for gender purposes. They have no bearing on the powers we are given. The aspect is always void, because void can be made into anything. I am  The Empress. Equius is The Existential. The male title is Emporer.

Our job is to become every possible classpect. We are capable of directly effecting the code of the session in order to win the game. I cut down the Powers of my sessions bosses. Having over 70 players really over powered them. I could have gotten rid of them completely, but who doesn’t love a good challenge? Of course, every attack I have is practically an instant kill, so that wouldn’t have been any fun if I had actually fought with the others.

They died too many times in the new universe. They eventually just dissolved. The last one to leave me was my Moirail. Alternian history knows her as The Songbird. She was a Key of Heart.

But I don't want to talk about her right now. I'm here right now to explain to you readers what is going on, as it has all been very sudden and I am sure a lot of you would like a for sure clear explanation here for once.

First I am going to tell you guys a small portion about myself and my personal significance to this story. So far I have been your eyes and ears. I am omniscient, and Equius and I have full control over the code of the game.

Being omniscient I can and will of course go into third person sight at some points instead of second person so you can all see me, but now is not the time for that.

The only reason I survived up until now is because void cannot be destroyed. That's why void players so rarely are parts of successful sessions. We always have to carry over into the next session the universe we created goes into. The ones who are not so successful, as well as all players Who are godtier and lone survivors of broken sessions, degrade until the void swallows them and their consciousness becomes part of a horrorterror cluster.

A lot of these players are the ones who destroyed their sessions in the first place, which is the main catalyst to the destructive power of the horrorterrors, and why they can have such a negative impact on players who heed their advice. Some good advice and knowledge can come forth from the stronger benevolent leftovers of players who want to help you not make their mistakes.

Some players like my descendant and I stay refuge in the furthest ring, which is a constant and is always the same and constantly expanding in in the real time of every session being played. Think of it as a forest, or a sort of barrier wall where only the right type of players have passes to get through. Omnipresent Void players are rare enough for us doing this to not effect much. We are mostly passive in our strategies , and prefer to manipulate from the sidelines, because it tends to yield the most interesting results. We can only go into other sessions and interact with other players of our calibur when we are in a current session. For example when I was on alternia I would not have been able to go to another session. Now I can however because I am in one. This is also why I was able to show you things going on in different sessions and different to be sessions.

I do hope that that was sufficient enough an explanation for now. I will probably not talk directly to you guys often after this.  


	15. Chapter 15

Your name is ANDREW HUSSIE and WHY the EVER LOVING FUCK is your webcomic UPDATING BY ITSELF.

The last thing you updated manually was the claymations of Calborn, so where in hell are these coming from?! This is not what you planned. Vriska was supposed to save everyone! Equius is supposed to be dead!

Now He’s on the roof glowing green in some godtier outfit you don’t recognise, aside from the fact that the color scheme definitely matches the void aspect, and… now he’s summoning an ax?

Where the fuck does this ax come from?

Wouldn’t he be trying to use a bow or something?

What The Hell Is Going On Here????????

 

Now the screen is split into five sections, showing equius in the middle, what the main thing is going on. In the top right little Cal is glowing green, and then disappears to the next place he goes on his fucked up timeline. In the top left Gamzees rope bonds glow green and fracture into non-existence, freeing him. (Why the heck is Equius freeing him? What is his motive to this?) In the bottom left box a flickering green figure, also seen briefly as though a trick of the eye in the other boxes, captchalogues Feferi’s and Nepeta’s corpses into the same card. It is then titled “FefetaSprite. Remember” In the bottom right Eridans and Tavroses corpses are also captchalogued, but are put into separate cards. They are named “Eridan+?” and “Tavros+?”.

All of this happens over the course of about 15 seconds.

In the center Equius has brought a wall into existence and has your poor sweet Vriska pinned.

A chat box is under the picture.

You click to open it.

 

Equius: I Suggest That You Leave.

 

==>

 

Equius wrenches the ax out of the wall, and Vriska absconds.

 

==>

Everyone is staring at him.

 

==>

Kanaya walks up behind him slowly and softly places a hand on his shoulder. Equius jumps and for a fraction of a second green cracks flicker across him. She takes her hand away quickly and he steadies.

Another chat box is under the flash.

 

Kanaya: You remember, don’t you?

==>

This flash shows Gamzee having stood up and come behind Kanaya. He looks at  Equius with an expression seemingly of awe, and Equius smiles at him. (“Going godtier seemed to have fixed his teeth”, you think)

 

==>

I this flash they are suddenly hugging. Gamzee is crying, lifting Equius, who is suddenly a lot shorter than he is? Equius has his legs wrapped around Gamzees torso and you have no fucking clue what is going on. It’s cute as hell but this is really out of character.

You should know.

They’re your characters.

Right?

 

==>

Karkat: ALRIGHT ALRIGHT I THINK THATS ENOUGH FUCKING SPONTANEOUS AFFECTION FOR EVERYONE TODAY

 

==>

Karkat tries to wrench Gamzee and Equius apart, and Equius hisses viciously. Karkat to backs up a few feet, startled.

==>

Gamzee stumbles backwards for a bit until his back hits the wall and they slide down it until they are just laying on the floor, Equius on top of him. Equius shimmies, for lack of a better word, up so he is face to face with the indigo-blood. Then he kissed his face, ignoring the blood. Actually, more aiming for it…? More crackles of green void sprout from where their skin meets and go to the deep cuts on Gamzees face. Then he just lays against him.

There is no continue prompt.

What the fuck is this even.

 

What does this mean? Is it going to continue to update by itself? Should you go along with it or admit that you have no fucking clue whats going on?

Is saying that it’s controlling itself even a sane option?

What are you going to do?

 

 


	16. Chapter 16

Your name is Andrew Hussie and you have just realized that this isn’t the first time that your comic updated by itself. It’s the second. You missed one.

It’s a flash game, much like the ones you’ve done already.

It’s about Equius.

You start off walking along a precarious cliff, when something large starts chasing you. You’re able to stay far enough ahead for it to never be in frame, but the ground seems to shake, like its unstable. Eventually you end up cornered, hiding behind a large boulder. As whatever-it-is approached where you are, you notice small green-glowing cracks beginning to form on the small ledge you are standing crouched on. They grow wider and wider until it crumbles under Equius and send him falling into the ocean. Then the screen goes black.

You play it a little more, and it seem to be a story about how Equius and Gamzee met.

It’s actually kind of… cute….

As it goes on you notice something strange. Every couple of time changes, the screen goes black and bright green, glitched out text flashes around it for a couple of seconds. The only words you can always make out are “Make her stop” and “I don’t want to talk”. Its. Really disturbing. Like Really disturbing.

The flash ends with Equius standing on his quest bed on LOCAS, or, you think it’s LOCAS, it’s mostly just an ocean with a small island and a pier with a giant cave in the side of a cliff, but it has his quest bed so it must be?

In front of him is a troll you only slightly recognise. Losaea? But she died? Like thirty seconds ago? What the fuck?

She’s highly decorated in a hooded cloak, some sort of silver tiara thing, and a royal looking dress.

Now that you look closely Equius is in a similar outfit.

They both have the colors of void.

Standing next to them is a tall adult human looking man with dark hair and a pointed beard. He’s wearing a greek style outfit (you think) in the shades of the ocean. In his hand is a tall thin trident, of a different shape than the Condescension's. It drips blue.

Poseidon? Probably.

 

==>

Loseae Leucop: Nice to finally meet ya kiddo, I’m The Midnight Rogue.


	17. Chapter 17

Your name is Andrew Hussie and its time for you to seek some answers.

You have no fucking clue how this is going to work but if this thing is sentient then it’ll notice what parts you post.

Maybe if you post dialogue of you asking what the fuck is going on it’ll respond or something?

You’re gonna do it.

You’re gonna make it happen

YOU’RE GONNA DO IT

 

You: “Could someone please explain what the fuck is going on?”

 

The reply is almost immediate.

==>

VV: ==>I’m saving my friends.

==>

VV?

You don’t remember writing someone with those screen name abbreviations.

You look at their actual screen name.

VialofVoid?

Who the fuck is that?

You are confused.

You are VERY confused.

==>

You: I would appreciate it if you would tell me who you are.

It updates again.

==>

VV: ==>Why would you care?

VV: ==>You wrote me as a joke character and then threw me into being a villain. Half the time I wasn’t even my own person.

VV: ==>I’m saving my friends from this horribly cruel story of yours and you can’t do shit about it.

==>

You: You never answered my question.

==>

VV: ==>I never told you I would.

==>

You: How are you even doing this anyway?

==>

VV: ==>Kinda helps when your actually omniscient and not just written to be.

==>

You: Okay no seriously who the fuck are you.

==>

VV: ==>Guess.

==>

You: Tell me.

==>

VV: ==>Guess.

==>

You: Tell me.

==>

VV: ==>Guess.

==>

You: Tell me.

==>

VV: ==>Guess.

==>

You: Tell me.

==>

VV: ==>Holy Fucking Shit Who Are You Nepeta?

==>

You: What?

==>

VV: ==>Nothing

==>

You: Holy shit.

You: Equius.

You: Your Equius.

You: Your him.

You: What the fuck man?

==>

VV: ==>Them.

==>

You: What?

==>

VV: ==>Them.

==>

You: Your just saying “Them” at me I don’t know what you’re getting at.

==>

VV: ==>I’m a Them.

==>

You: What do you mean?

==>

VV: ==>You know what? Never mind.

VV: ==>Sexualize my death

VV: ==>Make a joke out of my existence

VV: ==>Glorify and excuse the actions of my and Tavros's abuser.

VV: ==>I don’t have the capacity to give a shit right now.

VV: ==>Next time you want to bother me talk to me in person.

 

Holy shit.

Holy fucking shit.

This is actually happening.

WHAT

THE

HELL


	18. Chapter 18

Your name is Andrew Hussie and you thought that you were the only one home today.  Apparently you’re wrong because someone is walking towards your door.

You turn your head when it opens. It is not anyone that you recognize and you stand up from your computer.

Its a child.

Its a... troll?

"Hello Andrew. I thought it was about time that we had a talk. In person."

"Who the fuck are you? How did you get into my house?" You demand.

"My name is Equius Leucop-Zahhak and at one point I was one of your characters. I entered your house by making myself exist past the fourth wall and in your universe."

You stand there speechless. This cannot be actually happening. First the comic decides to update and go haywire on its own and NOW a CHARACTER SHOWS UP?!

"You seem confused. Why are you confused," it asks you.

"THIS IS NOT A THING THAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE ABLE TO HAPPEN!"

It flinches.

"Last time we spoke I said that if you wanted to bother me again, talk to me in person. Even though I am the one who bothered you I decided to do it in person regardless. If anything  I thought that you would expect this."

"This. is. not. a. thing. that. is. supposed. to. happen." you reiterate.

"Well some people say that still being alive after dying isn't supposed to be a thing that happens either but look who you proved wrong."

You stare at them.

They stare unblinkingly right back at you.

"So you really are Equius Zahhak."

"No I'm Equius Leucop-Zahhak excuse you." They retort with a sharp glare.

"Yeah whatever-" you start

"Don't you 'yeah whatever' me, its an important thing and I would quite appreciate it if you wouldn't ignore it!"

"Yeah? Why is it so important?"

"BECAUSE I AM A CHIMERA IT IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF WHO I AM AND I WOULD VERY MUCH APPRECIATE IT IF YOU WOULD NOT BE A HUMAN DICK AND ACKNOWLEDGE IT!"

"Okay, jeez, sorry. What even is the troll version of that anyway?"

"Its when the genetic code of a grub is dominated by two ancestors instead of just one, and it normally happens when the two ancestors were in a quadrant and pailed. Like mine were pitch. That's how I happened."

"Huh."

"Yep."

"That's actually kind of cool."

"Yep."

"So, uh, how is this all happening? Like I get that your completely in control of yourself and all but what about the others?"

"Its like that one human book series, what was it, inkheart? Its like the second one in that  where the world In the book just sort of goes on on its own despite the actual written story."

"Oh. Okay. That's really weird but okay. Wait a second how do you know that if that's a human thing?"

"When John did the thing I still remember what would have happened because void cannot be changed. That's how I knew to do all of this in the first place. So I remember all the human stuff I learned from being sprited with Hal."

"Wait a second so if you didn't actually die and Gamzee is free from lil cal how the fuck is the timeline strait?!"

"I took a doomed me from that exact moment where they were looking for Gamzee and put them in our timeline. So the body is there it’s just a doomed me. Gamzee will be replaced by a doomed version of him as well but that will be cal’s doing, not mine. I think it’s probably already happened to be honest."

"So you don't care about this other Gamzee who had the same type of relationship with a different you and will be forced to go through the same shit you just tried so hard to get yours out of?"

"Well its keeping the timeline stable."

"Yeah but still."

"Even if I saved that Gamzee and the one after that there are an almost infinite amount of Gamzees at work in various timelines. It would be too late for them to try and redeem themselves to the players from their timeline anyway. Me doing that would be strenuous and ultimately lead to more sad broken Gamzees and would have no benefit to anything."

"Wow. Okay."

Then you remember that Equius was the one who came to talk to you about something in the first place.

"So what did you come here for?"

"I was wondering. Since I have access to this world I have access to human materials that would make life on the meteor and that ship quite a lot easier. Of course the things I am thinking of surpass food and would overall be a lot in your human currencies but since I can put things in one of my cards and then write down the code I can only get one of the things and have an unlimited supply. I can and have done this with some of the money I have found in the kids rooms so if this is actually what the currency in this universes earth looks like I can continue doing that. I will probably need some sort of banking account or something though. I can also edit my appearance to be whatever I wish it to be so I can become a human and collect supplies that way if that is a more sufficiant setup for you."

"You've put a lot of thought into this haven't you?"

"Well yes, otherwise I would not be speaking to you about it."

"So, uh, could I see what you have capchalogued?"

"Yes."

Flickers of different colored boxes flip in front of him and when it stop he hands you a wad of bills. Mostly 20s, a few 5s, some 1s. You pull out your wallet and compare them to what you have in there.

"They're real alright."

Equius grins.

"Great."

"Yeah, I'll have to get some sort of account for you for this to work. So what kind of things were you thinking of getting?"

"Well food and toiletries, particularly for the humans with female sexual organs if they need any, probably a lot of kitchenware and cooking things since we will need to be eating proper meals, and probably just crafting things for Kanaya and Rose and I and gardening supplies for Jade while she's on the ship since I plan on spending time with her so she isn't lonely. Actually scratch that I can just bring her to the meteor with everyone else and we can garden there. Either way gardening is on the list as well. And paint. And canvas and stuff. And wood and carving supplies. And a kiln. And a pottery wheel. I have things planned."

"What kind of things?"

"Just sort of little present for the people in my timeline for tolerating me. Sort of "sorry for being an asshole" kind of things.

"Oh. What do you have planned?"

"Well wooden boxes for everyone because boxes are cool. I’m gonna make nepeta a tea set which is why I need clay and a kiln and a pottery wheel and stuff. And I'm gonna learn how to knit and then make Karkat a sweater with the quadrants on the front. For Aradia I'm making  cool grappling hook for her adventuring. For Terezi I'm painting a series of different red things for her to hang in her block. For Kanaya I might make a storage unit for the fabrics I'll get her for sewing and stuff. I might bind a design book for her too. I'm not sure what to do about Tavros and Eridan but I'm probably gonna sprite them alone and then they can add whatever they want the second thing to be themselves.

For Gamzee I'm gonna paint his block like the beach maybe if he wants me too.

That's all I have so far idea for doing wise."

"That's a lot of projects."

"I'll have a lot of time."

The two of you stand there in silence for a moment.

"So," you say,"is everything going the way you had hoped it would?"

Equius nods. Then they look up.

"You do realize that this is all going to be part of the comic right?"

"What?!"

"This conversation is going to be a part of the comic."

"Will the picture be like a cartoon or something?"

"No. It'll be like Who Framed Roger Rabbit. I'll be like I am in the comic, you and this room will be like you are in real life."

"That's freaky."

"It is what it is. Time for me to take my leave I think. Have fun reading the next updates."

Equius glows void green for a couple of seconds and dissolves into nothingness.

Things are going to get very strange from now on.


	19. Chapter 19

Your name is Andrew Hussie and you have decided, since your character has become their own person, to get to know them.

You have already established from recent updates that they could care less but not by very much about their gender, and would prefer to not have one. However they don't mind if people use male pronouns out of habit. You will try to remember to use they pronouns though because you have had a slightly rocky start to this somewhat parental relationship and you wish to correct that.

You update the comic with your request for them to come to your universe and just sort of talk. To be completely honest you have no idea if this is actually going to go the way you hope it will or if it will simply be the two of you awkwardly standing in your kitchen saying nothing to one another.

Hopefully that will not happen.

You would greatly appreciate it if that would not happen.

They come.

Equius like, actually shows up.

Holy shit okay.

They're wearing short jean shorts and a large off the shoulder purple sweater and you have no idea where these came from but with the amount of power Equius has they probably just willed it into existence. It would not surprise you one bit.

"So, uh, I'm, here, and stuff."

He pauses a lot when they talk.

They pause a lot, sorry.

"Yeah you are."

"So what did you ask me here to converse about?"

"Well, you I guess."

They look at you blankly.

"You wanted to talk about me?"

"Yeah. You're not my character anymore. You're your own independent troll and I'd like to get to know you."

Equius looks down at the tiled floor, seemingly unsure of what exactly to say.

"You certainly don't have to-"

"no no it's okay."

They continue to look at the floor and they're fiddling with the hem of their sweater.

"Its just that I don't entirely know you as a person so its weird."

Oh.

Shit.

You forgot about that.

"Well I don't really know you as a person much either, so we're learning about each other the same way."

They seemed to relax slightly at that. Well, no really relax per say. But they became visibly not as tense.

"So," you start off, "do you still like the same kinds of things you liked before?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like horses and archery and stuff."

"Well yeah, but I like other things too. I mean, I like horses but turtles are nice. And snakes. And cats. And those weird human fresh water sea cow creatures...?"

"Manatees?" You suggest.

"Yeah those things. Those are cool. Bees are nice also. And small lizards. And dragons. Dragons are fucking amazing."

"Dragons don't actually exist here. "

"They can if I try hard enough."

There's a long pause where the two of you just stare at one another from across the kitchen island thing.

"Please don't."

"I know. That would wreak havoc your ecosystem and we all know you guys are messing that up yourselves without the help of dragons to begin with," they say solemnly.

"So what about archery?" You ask, trying to change the subject. Equius pauses for a while, like the change was abrupt and too unexpected.

"What about archery?"

"Are you still doing it or what?" You reiterate. (It must have been too broad of a question. They probably weren't sure what of archery you question was meant for.)

"Oh, uh... Kind of?"

"Kind of?"

"Its just never really been my thing. I mean, I can control my strength fine it's just that when I'm attacked my first instinct really isn't to draw my bow notch an arrow and shoot it my first instinct is to punch it in the face. It just doesn't fit my combat style. Most void player fight empty handed actually. When I do fight with something though I just hit things with whatever to be honest."

"Huh. So what about that giant ax thing then?"

"Sort of my go-to hitting item."

“Ah.”

“Ye.”

“So what are your plans?”

“Plans for, what, exactly?”

“The game. Like, the direction of the plot and stuff.”

Equius stares off into the distance for a bit.

“I don’t have that with me right now…”

“Have what with you?”

“I have like, a notebook, and a wall of stick paper, and a whiteboard, and some other things that I use when i try to figure out the chronological path of my plans so that I don’t forget to do things because once one thing has my attention, if someone or something gets me off track or i like, notice something else then I forget the original thing completely.”

“So you have an attention span problem?”

“No, it’s like, a specific thing… hang on lemme find out what it is in human terms.”

“ADHD?” you suggest.

“What does that stand for?”

“Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.”

“I’ll have to read about it but that might be it yeah.”

“So what are your basic plans that you actually remember?”

“Ah……… Well I’ll have to make nice with the Empress so she is either helping us take down LE or not an issue…. I also need to get everyone god tier, which should be fine because I’ve already entered everyone’s planets into a negative space and I can make it so time won’t pass while we’re there, or will at least pass slower anyhow. And then I need to make sure that everyone is spritted properly and I think I’ll just have Eridan and Tavros alone and probably just leave sollux to himself unless he and tavros are okay with being spritted together but otherwise I won’t do that, then I’m making Hall a body so he can be like Aradia was, speaking of Aradia I need to get started on that grappling hook, wait hang on but she won’t need it because she’s on a ship in the middle of the ocean in a dream bubble DAMN IT!”

“She could use it on your new planet when she’s exploring,” you suggest.

“You are amazing.”

“Thanks.”

“That’s essentially all that I remember at the moment.”

“What are you going to do with Her Condescension?”

“Put her in a negative space so she won’t cause trouble for us. Like, I’ll visit her and make her people to be with so she doesn’t get lonely but if I’m going to give her a second chance I still want to make sure she can’t mess anything up for me.”

“The hell is a negative space?”

“oooooooh…. It’s like… well it’s a thing that only void players can make? Its like a space between time and space that… it’s essentially a pocket? Yeah it’s like a pocket! Pocket space!”

“Oh.” You still don’t really get what it is but okay. “So what types of activities have you gotten into lately?”

“I started knitting, and I got into painting and wood carving and sewing again but sewing is more of Kanaya’s thing and it hurts my fingers to pinch the thing that long so I think I’ll just let that be her thing but I really like the knitting and I forgot how much I loved painting I think I’m gonna paint murals on the walls of the meteor to liven the place up a bit and give it more color I’m thinking like, for example if Terezi let me paint her block I’d paint her forest and then in mine I’d paint the ocean and a bunch of cliffs and stuff I think that would be nice I also need to give the place more lighting it’s really dreary and I think it’s starting to affect people's moods and that’s not good.”

“You have giant fucking lungs man.”

They stare at you blankly.

“Because you said that all in one breath.”

“Oh, okay. Yeah. I have Losi’s lungs. I have her gills too but they don’t work all that well. Like they work they just don’t get as much oxygen as like, Eridans do because Horusses genes cancels their effectiveness out slightly a bit just a little.”

“Huh. Interesting.”

“Yeah genetics are cool.”

"So how are you different from the other trolls? You have really old pre-alternian troll genes is your DNA so what else does that effect?"

Equius looks slightly uncomfortable.

"You don't have to answer that if you don't want to."

You pull up two chairs so you can both sit instead of just standing.

"You want anything to eat?"

"No thank you."

"I have fruit and stuff."

"I'm fine."

You get an apple and start cutting it up into small pieces.

"Nothing really showed up to a noticeable extent until I molted, but I've made my form appear younger as to not freak out the others more than I do already, so they are not relevant at the moment."

You still your knife and turn to look over at them.

"You molted? Your like seven you shouldn't molt until you're like ten."

They shift in their seat again.

"I am an adult, actually. I'm twelve."

"What do you mean you're twelve?"

"I'm twelve sweeps. Twenty four of your human years."

"Yeah I understood that but, how old is everyone else?"

"Nearly seven?"

"How the hell are you so much older?"

"My quest took longer than I expected, and then Loseae wouldn't let me advance until I had gotten some training so that took a while. And then I had to find the correct timeline which was a bit of a hassle. I didn't actually meet up with everyone until they were on that rock fighting whatever it is they were fighting. Then I took on the time aspect and rewound to the moment where Rose and Dave entered the meteor. I took on the form of a younger troll, and the rest has already been seen."

"Does anyone know how old you actually are?"

"Well yes."

"Who?"

"You, Loseae, Poseidon, everyone who reads the comic,-"

"Well yeah I meant any of the trolls, like on the meteor."

"You did not specify."

"Sorry, I know, but you haven't told Gamzee or Kanaya?"

"Of course not."

"But you tell them everything."

"I don't actually, I don't know what you formed that assumption from but there are a great many things that I do not tell them for their own well being. I can't have them knowing that we are simply characters in a story, or knowing what will happen further along in the plot, or who the pawns in this game are and how they will be played."

"Your kinda starting to sound a bit like a villain here kiddo...."

"Am I not?"

Their words startle you.

"What do you mean?"

"Well a version of me is within the antagonist, and not all of the things I am doing necessarily benefit everyone in my party. I hide things from people constantly and due to this they have no say in what will happen to them. Sure, some of my reasons for withholding information is for their own sanity but I also know that they would probably object the some of my plans, but then none of what I am trying to do will work. These are not the qualities someone who is truly benevolent has with their plans."

"So are you the hero or the antagonist then?"

"I simply am."

"So, neither?"

"I do not believe that I fit in either of those categories, so yes, neither."

"Are you okay?"

Equius pauses. Equius pauses for a very, very long time.

"I am not sure."


	20. Chapter 20

 

==> Be the Anglerfish

You are now the Condescension.

You are now the Condescension and someone, alive, and a troll, has requested an audience with you.

An adult troll that is, even though last time you checked all of the other trolls in this game were a) glubbin fish food, and b) practically fuckin wrigglers, so where the hell did this guy come from?

You don't recognize them as looking like an old bloodline either, and you should recognize anyone of a high blood status with mismatched horns like that.

She dares to look you in the eye straight on, with a confidence you have not seen from anyone in a long time. Her scalera are a dark, lapis blue with a brighter blue veining out from the pupil. A color you have not seen since the first sweep your rule. You eliminated that caste.

You stand up from your throne and circle her, taking in the physical features, gauging what her strengths and weaknesses could be.

As you turn you see that she has fins and gills, lightly flushed with blue. This troll should not have survived to even hatch into a wriggler, none the less grow to an adult. Then again, that red mutant got away to hatch fully. You will have to enforce the surveillance on the caves to make sure that this does not continue.

"Whale? Water you here for? Clamn't have you wastin my time you know."

"I am here to propose an alliance."

"For what," you laugh, "whater you, some rival empress? You're not even a tyrianblood, who do you think you're foolin here sister?"

"I am here to make an offer, are you willing to hear it, or would you rather I simply delete your code and be on my way?"

You do not like the haughty tone in this lowbloods' voice.

"You'd better watch your glubbin mouth here."

"Will you hear my offer or not?"

"Shore, whatever, spill it."

"Now I am aware that you are being made to serve Lord English. I suspect that you are not quite fond with that arrangement, am I correct?"

"I guess."

"Now, Lord English is basically the antagonist to my little story, and he needs to be eliminated. Now that would only leave you. However, I would like to give you a second chance. My friends and I will tear him apart, leaving you free. Until we do that however we need you out of our way. We also need you to not do whatever you want to do because that would mess up my plan. In order to pull this off I would put you somewhere, essentially alone, unable to effect our session, but also able to do whatever you please in that place. You would not have to do Lord English's bidding and we would also not fight you because it would not be necessary. So, if you relinquish your place of rule and your place in this game session, I will place you where you can be free and not interfere with us."

"And if I do not?"

"I will delete your code and you will cease to exist."

"You sound like you're threatening me."

"Well we would be killing you regardless if you do not comply so I may as well make it easier. Now, do we have a deal or not?"

"Who is your ancestor, wriggler."

"Loseae Leucop, the Midnight Rogue and the Empress of Void."

"Whale who's that other horn from then?"

"Horuss Zahhak."

"Whale, a mutant, an illegal blood color, and a Chimera. What a combination you are. Tell me, why are you so up and inclined to not just kill me?"

"I believe that some people deserve second chances, and until you truly prove otherwise I would like to not have to kill you. Now would you rather not exist, or will you allow me to place you somewhere safe?"

"Where would you be puttin me exactly?"

"A negative space, somewhere only I would be able to enter and exit. You would have my company occasionally and I will see what I can do about making things that can stay there with you but we can developed the place to your specific needs as time progresses. I will also set the queens code for this session as defeated so that is considers you dead despite that fact that you are not. Do we have a deal?"

"So its either this or not existing?"

"Yes."

"Do I really have a choice then?"

The abomination of a low blood grins, showing nothing but gums and small needle like white points on the bottom layer.

"Where the fuck are your fangs child?!" You shriek, utterly horrified.

With the wet, bone on skin equivalent of a sword being pulled from its sheath long, long, needle pointed teeth draw themselves down from where they had been retracted. You had only seen a fang set up like that in ancient archives of old empresses, near the beginning of Alternia.

"What the glubbing fuck kinda bullshit is that?"

"I have a very old set of DNA," the young, no adult, troll says. "I'll be coming back for you when your room is ready."


End file.
